James Shaw case to cost taxpayers

BY ANDY BLATCHFORD

andy.blatchford@transcontinental.ca

Beaconsfield has paid about $20,000 in lawyer fees for a case against residents in the James Shaw Street neighbourhood, and the city’s mayor expects the bill to mount.

In December, a group of 10 residents won an injunction to close a residential road days after the city opened it.

Locals argue the unblocked stretch would transform their quiet street into a thoroughfare to nearby Highway 40, a change that could be dangerous for pedestrians in the area.

But city officials say opening the road is a question of security for a different reason.

Fire Chief André Beausoleil asked Beaconsfield to open the road after fire trucks took too long responding to a call in the area last May.

Residents claim the city reneged on a promise to keep the street closed when it passed a resolution to remove the road barriers last fall. They suggest the seven-metre stretch be turned into a gated lane reserved for emergency vehicles — a proposal originally accepted by Beausoleil.

When Beaconsfield removed the cinder blocks in December, the citizens took the city to court.

“We don’t have any choice, we opened the road in good faith, we feel we did the right thing, but the citizens, they took us to court,” Mayor Bob Benedetti said. “When you’re taken to court you have to defend yourself.”

Last week, Beaconsfield passed a resolution to hire an independent traffic engineer, at a cost of $6,000, to compile a report on the issue. Residents from the neighbourhood will be invited to the engineer’s presentation at an information meeting at city hall on Feb. 19, Benedetti said.

“My personal opinion, which I’m not shy to state, is that (James Shaw) should be opened, but right now we’re in the middle of an honest re-evaluation of that process,” he said. “It’s not a very pleasant situation and it’s unfortunate that it’s come to this. We have a responsibility to all the citizens of Beaconsfield and even if some people are not caring about their personal security, we are.”

Last week, the city hosted a public meeting to discuss traffic congestion concerns in the area and Benedetti said residents on nearby streets called for James Shaw to be opened.

“It’s a life-threatening, serious safety issue. Now that in itself is enough, but I’m not going to deny that there are certain advantages to the citizens of Montrose and Elizabeth (streets) if that street is opened. To what extent we don’t know. This we hope will come out in this independent (traffic) study,” he said.

Previous resolutions concerning the closure of James Shaw were repealed at last week’s meeting.

But Marie-Josée Gendron, a James Shaw resident who is part of the group that initiated the case, said the city erased the resolutions and hired a traffic engineer so it could start from scratch.

“I feel it’s already been decided,” she said Monday. “I find they’re just going through the motions.

“Obviously I’m against it, but which steps we’re going to take next, I’m not sure.”

City seeking financial help

Beaconsfield sent a request to the Union des municipalitiés du Québec (UMQ) last week for financial help with the rising court fees in the James Shaw case.

Benedetti expects UMQ to come through with assistance because the outcome of this case could have an impact on cities across the province.

“If it turns out (the decision) limits the abilities of municipalities to do things, it’s a concern to all municipalities,” he said. “We’d be crippled if we had to consult on every decision.”

He said a UMQ committee will likely review the request in March.